Blur star to run in next election

Rowntree, now 43, played drums with Britpop band Blur

Blur drummer and Labour supporter Dave Rowntree will stand for the party at the next general election.

The 43-year-old was selected last week to fight the seat of Cities of London and Westminster, currently held by Conservative MP Mark Field.

Last year the musician failed in his first bid for political office, coming third in a London council by-election.

The former computer engineer also owns an animation company, Nanomation, and is studying to become a barrister.

Last year he admitted fighting a cocaine addiction in the 1990s. "I managed to get help before they destroyed my life," he wrote on the Guardian website.

Mr Field's representatives declined to comment about Mr Rowntree's candidature but said they would be writing to him shortly.

The Liberal Democrats said they had yet to select their own candidate for the seat.